The present invention relates generally to brassieres and more particularly to a brassiere constructed to increase comfort by individual adjustability while providing support.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,699,971 issued Oct. 24, 1972 to William C. Hittel et al and assigned to the assignee of the present invention, there is disclosed a brassiere, the cups of which are framed by distensible inner, outer and under bust panels. As discussed in the Hittel patent, the foundation garments have been standardized using a numerical notation for the girth size and an alphabetic notation for the bust cup size. However, it is recognized that both the girth of the female dorsal at the bust and the volumetric capacity of the bust vary or change within each class of standardized size designation as well as varying for a given woman in response to body breathing, movement, and to a certain extent, depending upon the given time of the month with respect to the woman's menstrual cycle.
To accommodate for these variations in girth size and volumetric capacity, the Hittel et al patent provided a three panel frame for the cup with the top inner and outer panels being stretchable. The distensible frame panels of the brassiere permit ease of breathing, movement and advantageously tend to be non-restrictive in the critical anatomical areas, for example, along the outer side edge of the cups which is the area of blood supply to the breasts. The distensibility of the various frame members also dissipates the various forces applied to the garment during the movement of the wearer and particularly the vertical forces which are especially acute along the outer edges during the lifting of the arms. By use of individual panels, the direction of distensibility can be controlled along each edge of the cups by the separate and distinct panels. The inner panels provide stretch along a line traverse to the cup edge with no stretch parallel to the cup edge. The outer panel primarily is stretched along an axis parallel to the edge of the cup.
The inner and outer top panels are seamed together above the top or apex of the cup. This joinder effectively eliminates distensibility at the top edge of the cup and provides support for the cup. Thus the forces that are relieved by the framing elements are transmitted through this non-distensible area to the edge of the cup and cause an acute transition between the cup and the frame.
The elasticity of the frame of some brassieres was not sufficiently controlled and thus would not provide sufficient support for the breasts. Since the weight of the breasts is concentrated along the lower section of the cup, the cup is urged downward. With the cup projecting outward of the body, this downward force is experienced in the lower cup area not only as a vertical downward force but also as a horizontal force across the curvature of the cup. Thus, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,896,818, issued on July 29, 1975 to Jack J. Locascio and assigned to the assignee of the present invention, means are provided to selectively restrict certain areas of the cup frame and through the implementation of the selective restriction provide a construction which enables variation in the shape of the cup perimeter while maintaining the appropriate support. The restriction is produced by adding an overlapping panel to selectively restrict the vertical distensibility of the inner panels as they extend along the upper inner edge of each of the cups and restrict horizontal distensibility of the inner panel between the cups. Although Locascio has provided an improvement in support, the edges of the base of the cup are not isolated from the frame and thus forces applied to the brassiere cause the cups to move and have an acute transition with the frame.
Efforts to isolate the cup from the tensions of the yoke or periphery of the brassiere have included attaching the cup to a multi-directional distensible material. For example, in the West German Offenlegungsschrift 2,438,089 issued Feb. 19, 1976, the cup 6 is surrounded from the front central seam to the back with a single piece of multi-directional stretchable material 3,4. Since the body-encompassing portion or dorsal portion is unitary with the cup framing portion, and the major direction of stretch is selected for expansion horizontally because of the dorsal panel, the appropriate direction of stretch and support along the frame portion of the cup is not provided.
Another attempt to isolate the cup from the framing yoke is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,192,929 to Guberman issued July 6, 1965. Each cup is attached to an inverted U-shape elastic member 11 which is seamed about its periphery to a non-distensible yoke 2. The frame is surrounded on its periphery by non-elastic tapes 4, 5 and 6. Although Guberman provides an isolation frame material 11, it required the second non-distensible material or yoke 2 to provide the appropriate support with the non-elastic tapes 4, 5 and 6. The dimension and positioning of the unitary framing elements 11, although isolating the cup, does not provide sufficient support as described above. Also, the non-distensible yoke 2 provides a restriction along the upper, inner and outer edges of the breasts which is undesirable as indicated previously.
Thus, it can be seen that the prior art is concerned with optimizing support and comfort and has continued to design brassieres for different segments of users which stress one of these over the other.